Friday, May 10, 2013

Adopt Jill
A few weeks ago, Charlie and I celebrated National Hairball Awareness Day with a little help from Furminator. Besides giving me an excuse to make a mustache out of cat hair, I was also excited to participate because Furminator generously offered to donate 25 of their great grooming tools to the animal rescue of my choice. This year, I selected Karma Cat + Zen Dog Rescue Society, based out of East Brunswick, NJ. Adopt Tipit - Look at that tail!I first met Karma Cat founder, Christie Arlotta, at a local adoption day event last year, and was immediately drawn to her because 1. she was hanging out with kittens, and 2. she was wearing a pair of jewel encrusted cat ears!
Since then, I've learned that she is as compassionate and caring as she is stylish, and am completely in awe of, and am inspired by, of all the amazing work her organization has done. Last month, Christie invited me to attend the rescue's annual Paws for Celebration event, a charity dinner celebrating their three year anniversary and honoring the 124 cats they saved last year.Adopt Dexter
Christie founded Karma Cat with her sister Michelle in 2010, inspired by their longtime dream of starting their own rescue after years of volunteering with other groups. They currently manage the adoption center at Edgebrook Animal Hospital in East Brunswick and plan on creating a sanctuary setting somewhere in New Jersey within the next 7 years.The Buffy The Vampire Slayer Kittens were rescued from a hoarding situation. Adopt Anya, Oz & Xander!The mission of Karma Cat + Zen Dog is to provide a safe and peaceful haven for homeless, abandoned or abused animals. They also work to decrease the number of cats and dogs being destroyed in kill shelters through the work of their foster, spay/neuter, trap-neuter-return, and education programs. Their vision is to create a world where every companion animal is respected, fed, warm, happy, and not in danger of being killed because it is temporarily homeless.

I've seen firsthand the great work they do with local shelters, and have had the pleasure of meeting just some of their passionate volunteers. Visit the wonderful Zen Cat kitties at Edgebrook Animal Hospital or at North Brunswick PetSmart, and find all of their adoptable cats online (including all of the kitties featured in this post!) on Petfinder.
To learn more about Karma Cat + Zen Dog Rescue Society, or to donate or volunteer, visit their website at karmacatzendog.org. You can also follow their updates on Twitter @KarmaCatZenDog, and on Facebook here.